At 6:30 AM on July 12, at exactly the time they are supposed to, a line of men files out of the Holiday Inn across from the Merchandise Mart and into two borrowed CTA buses. They are wearing polo shirts and T-shirts and khaki pants and jeans and caps and windbreakers. Some have potbellies, and some have hearing aids. One is paralyzed and in a wheelchair, two are missing arms, and at least a few are filled with shrapnel. Some are in their 40s, some are in their 70s. Some have lost their jobs, some have lost their minds.
Newman hands five dollars to Don Ballard, who is collecting for a pool that will go to whoever catches the biggest fish. On May 16, 1968, Ballard threw himself on a lethal explosive device in Quang Tri province in Vietnam to protect his comrades from a deadly blast, though it failed to explode. Ballard is wearing a T-shirt that says “low-impact aerobics” and has a picture of a person lying on a couch.
Sorenson wears a polo shirt that says “Kwajalein,” the atoll where his injury occurred. The shirt commemorates a Fourth of July celebration the week before in the islands, where Sorenson was the guest of honor. “They do missile tests there now,” he says. “I hardly recognized it–it was overgrown with coconut trees and other foliage. I was honored along with three others who had been awarded at the time posthumously. Most medals are awarded posthumously because what they do to receive the medal usually kills them.”
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For the next five hours the captains put on what amounts to a major military operation against unsuspecting salmon and trout. They troll in 60 to 90 feet of water, keeping in touch with each other by radio. They chatter among themselves, telling each other where they are, the depth they’re in, the number of fish caught so far, and the estimated weight of each catch.
Finally the lure reaches the surface, and Nelson stands by with a big net ready for the fish. Ortegel has pliers ready to detach the hook. But the hook is empty.
“Play this guy easy,” he says as he carefully hands the line to Sorenson.
